Pune outshines city in funding for start-ups

Mumbai: Mumbai is known as the country’s financial capital, but Pune has outshined it in terms of financial dealing for fintech and foodtech start-ups. Mumbai saw a dip of 44 per cent in its funding deals for start-ups in 2016 compared to 2015 while Pune saw an increase in funding from `260 crore in 2015 to `360 in 2016, according to a report by VCCircle, a business information website.

The report further said that in the last five years, “Fintech startups in the state have received funding worth $122 million from 64 deals, while foodtech start-ups have received $64.5 million from 47 deals. Mumbai and Pune continued to be epicentres of start-up funding in Maharashtra in 2016, accounting for 96 per cent of the total deals and 99 per cent of the deal value.”

According to Vinay Nathan, an entrepreneur who owns a start-up in Pune, “Pune has a long history of having start-ups compared to Mumbai. Also, when we compare Pune with Mumbai there are two things on which Mumbai has to improve. One is the operational cost and the property rates in Mumbai are way too high when compared to Pune. In terms of having people on board to work with you, Pune has a lot more talent than Mumbai and this due to the giant engineering background in Pune.”

The report, further, added, “Mumbai contributed $232 million worth of funding from 151 deals in 2016, a steep decline from $418 million worth of funding from 233 deals in 2015. Notably, Pune recorded an annual 69 per cent increase in deal volume at 59, and a jump of 35 per cent in funding value at $ 52.5 million. It was, in fact, one of the few start-up hubs in India to buck the funding slowdown last year.”

For Pune start-up owner Vivek Mulay, Mumbai has never been an ideal option. “The lifestyle in Pune is much more relaxed when compared to Mumbai. Look at the time taken for one person to reach from one end to another in Mumbai. However, in Pune one can easily travel in shorter time from one place to another.”

Recently, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis also said that Pune would be the country’s largest start-up hub after Bengaluru.